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Researchers have found brain activity unique to lucid dreaming, in which one is aware they are dreaming while still in the dream, suggesting that a conscious experience can arise from within sleep. While lucid dreaming is studied to understand the basis of consciousness, or how the brain creates the feeling of ‘being’, the phenomenon is also studied for its therapeutic effects in treating depression, anxiety, and nightmare disorder. However, progress in understanding consciousness is hindered by small sample sizes and diverse electroencephalogram setups, which measure electrical activity in the brain, the team said The study also found reduced levels of ‘beta activity’ — which is related to alertness and usually falls during sleep — in the brain’s central and parietal areas. These regions process sensory information such as touch, temperature and pressure Linked to REM, or rapid eye movement, sleep, a lucid dream can feel intensely vivid and real, often accompanied by a degree of control over how the dream unfolds. For this study, the researchers compared brain activity during lucid dreaming, REM sleep (when lucid dreaming was not going on) and while being awake The team found brain activity distinct to lucid dreaming, such as a reduced intensity of gamma waves which helps consolidate memory while sleeping.